Whether you are an avid blog reader, have some blogs and online content you follow regularly, or even if you haven’t yet developed a following on industry blogs – an RSS feed can help improve your business by giving you a great daily dose of Education!

First things first – what is an RSS feed?

An RSS is technically called a “Rich Site Summary” and serves as a web feed or “personal channel” where you can search, follow and track frequently updated web content – commonly used for blogs and news headlines.

Why consider using an RSS feed?

RSS feeds allow you to easily and quickly stay informed on the latest content of your favorite news, blogs and web content resources that interest you and apply to your business. This way, instead of starting your day and checking your favorite five sites, you can add them to your feed and the latest posts will all appear in one easy to review and preview feed – saving you time! Stories or posts that interest you can be clicked, and you will be directed right to the full post.

How do you get started?

Setting up a feed reader is easy! There are a variety of platforms available. You may have heard Google recently announced a change to their popular feed – Google Reader. It will no longer be available as of July 1, 2013, but luckily if you do have a feed with Google Reader you can export your feeds to a new reader using Google Takeout. There are a variety of popular feeds available to explore, including: netvibes, Pageflakes, and Bloglines. Additionally, you may have one associated with your email account, such as Yahoo!.

Once you have established a feed, start to visit your favorite sites (including WeddingWireEDU, of course!) and add their RSS to your feed! If you have questions, we suggest looking at the feed’s help section for tips on getting started. Once you have established your feed, you can continue to add to it as you find new favorite blogs, sources with great articles, and any news sources that you would like updates from. Some sites we would recommend include: American Express’ Open Forum for small business tips, Mashable and TechCrunch for the latest in tech, WeddingWire’s blog for wedding inspiration and WeddingWireEDU for tips, updates and advice for Wedding and Event Pros!

As new content is published, it will be delivered to your feed in chronological order. That way, whether you constantly refresh your feed or catch up on a weekly basis, you can scroll through the content and review the posts that appeal to you and your business.

Enjoy!

Once you have your RSS established or further developed, find a way to incorporate it into your daily (or even weekly) routine. Catch up on the latest posts as you enjoy your morning coffee, dedicate some time to learning over lunch at your desk, or review the day’s relevant posts as you unwind watching a favorite evening TV show. Whatever works for you! RSS feeds are a great way to ensure that the latest industry happenings, tips and advice is delivered right to you!